Noble bags drillship gigs in Gulf of Mexico and Ghana

Offshore rig owner Noble has won new contracts for two of its drillships, one in the Gulf of Mexico and one in Ghana.

The first contract was awarded to the 2011-built Noble Globetrotter I drillship by an undisclosed client. The contract is for one firm well with up to six optional wells comprising a total potential duration of around 200 days.

The contract is expected to begin in early January 2025 and has an estimated total contract value of $70m if all options are exercised.

The drillship is not currently working and its last deal was with Shell, also in the Gulf of Mexico. It was operating on a $390,000 dayrate and completed the campaign in October.

The second is for the 2014-built Noble Venturer drillship in Ghana with Tullow Oil. The new deal will begin in May 2025 after the rig completes its campaign for Rhino Resources in Namibia. The rig is working in Namibia on a $410,000 dayrate.

The contract is for six firm wells and will last 360 days with a total contract value of $171m. After the first two wells which should take around 120 days, the contract will be suspended at zero rate until the end of 2025 to perform a planned SPS maintenance period including thruster replacement.

After this break, the contract will resume in January 2026 for the remaining four firm wells which would take around 240 days. The contract also includes three additional options of two wells each estimated at 120 days each.